What would Dr. King say to the crowds of Montgomery, Alabama today if he knew that the city which birthed the Civil Rights Movement STILL has not elected a Black mayor into office? What would King say if he knew that the same Ella Bell at age 17, who marched with him in that crowd on March 25, 1965 FOR THE RIGHT TO VOTE, continued marching on to an esteemed career – and today is only a matter of votes from becoming Montgomery’s first Black mayor in history? Could you imagine the pride that Dr. King would feel?
This photo of King was taken in Montgomery as he spoke these
famous, highlighted words on the steps of the Alabama state capitol on Ella Bell’s 17th birthday, while she and thousands took in every word on March 25, 1965.
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African Americans at that time were blatantly and legally denied the basic rights of United States’ citizens, including the most powerful – THE RIGHT TO VOTE. To exercise YOUR POWER OF CHOICE to determine who will represent you and your community, and be responsible for managing your hard earned tax dollars – was a power that Montgomery, Alabama in particular, did not want Black people to have.
For, if the majority of Montgomery citizens – which are Black – could vote, that would mean they could possibly elect a Black man or woman into City Hall. However, when Dr. King looked out at that crowd consisting of people of all colors and ethnic backgrounds….preachers, children, nuns, priests, celebrities, and most significantly – thousands of unnamed foot soldiers who had just completed an 8 DAY MARCH ON FOOT from Selma, Alabama – the images of blistered feet, outdoor camps, and miles of road below remind many who joined that march in Montgomery, how long they had come.
With everything to lose, African Americans exposed their faces and fates not only to Montgomery, Alabama, but to the entire world in such fiery determination that you can feel it today in this video. Ella Bell was there. She was 17 years old. Today, Bell stands on the shoulders of that platform which Dr. King, Rev. Abernathy and thousands of unsung, unnamed heroes braced into being 50 years ago.
So why hasn’t Montgomery fully stepped onto the foundation which it laid for everyone else?
During an interview at the fountain on Dexter Avenue, a location Bell specifically requested with a view only a few feet away from the historic footprints of Rosa Parks, BELL CANDIDLY DISCUSSED THE CONFLICTING LOOK OF PROGRESS VS. THE HISTORIC LACK OF PROGRESS IN MONTGOMERY” (Interview Credit: WSFA)
And for all that she’s seen change, she says so much has stayed the same.
“I’ve seen a lot of construction. I’ve seen a lot of building progress. I participated in the March 25 march on the state capital, it was my 17th birthday,” Bell says. “But when it comes to the soul of the city, I’ve not seen the changes that I think ought to occur.”
She sees her campaign for mayor as a new day for the city.
“Montgomery is getting ready to come full circle, not just by me being an African-American, but by me being an African-American and a female as well,” Bell said.
50 years and 5 months later from the day that Dr. King shouted, “How Long? NOT Long!”, the spotlight is now on Montgomery, Alabama to see if 50 years has been long enough.
Blacks make up 61% of the registered voters in Montgomery, yet surprisingly HAS NEVER ELECTED AN AFRICAN-AMERICAN INTO ITS’ CITY’S OFFICE as mayor.
Yes, you just read that correctly.
- The birthplace of what is known as the Modern Day Civil Rights Movement
- The city which spread word-of-mouth-news into an instantly crippling economic boycott of buses lasting 381 days. Black folks who didn’t carpool walked to work. They would watch and let the buses drive straight by.
- The base of the Montgomery Improvement Association
- * PLEASE SEE JULY 14, 2015 INTERVIEW OF REP. THAD McCLAMMY TO UNDERSTAND THE TROUBLING REASON WHY THIS IS SO.
THAT city named Montgomery, which has a majority African American population, has been waiting for a mighty LONG time since King spoke these words about the significance of Montgomery, Alabama :
“No, it is not an accident that one of the great marches of American history should terminate in Montgomery, Alabama. Just 10 years ago in this very city, a new philosophy was born of the negro struggle. Montgomery was the first city in the south in which the entire negro community united and squarely faced its’ age old oppressors. Out of its’ struggle, more than bus segregation was won… A new idea…more powerful than guns or clubs was born. Negros took it and carried it across the south in epic battles that electrified the nation and the world. Yet strangely the climactic conflicts always were fought and won on Alabama soil.“
“They told us we wouldn’t get here. There were those who said that we would get here only over their dead bodies. But all the world today knows that WE ARE HERE, and we are standing before the forces of power in the state of Alabama saying, “We ain’t gonna let nobody turn us around!” (March 25, 1965)
It doesn’t get any bolder or braver than that. Knowing that you could lose your job, your home, and even your life by just being seen in that crowd – and showing up anyway.
“How Long?!”
No matter what you do, say, eat, wear, drive or ride to get there….
GET TO THE POLLS ON AUGUST 25TH AND USE YOUR POWER TO VOTE ….IT’S WHAT PEOPLE BATTLED TIRELESSLY FOR US TO HAVE!
Many lost limbs, loved ones and even their lives so that WE would have that “ultimate right” of power granted to American citizens…THE RIGHT TO VOTE!
CLICK HERE FOR A LINK TO RESOURCES ON POLLING LOCATIONS FOR YOUR AREA
God bless you and I’ll see you at the polls, Family.
M. Kita Williams
The LOOK of progress VERSUS THE LACK OF PROGRESS in Montgomery
This seal says it all
CIVILRIGHTSAGENDA.COM 